The Washington critic., 1887-11-17
WASHINGTON, NOV. II, 1887.
pANGERs or OCEAN TRAVEL

more sun calls attention TO the TACT, not
known perhaps to the general public,
but of grave Importance to all Atlantic
Voyagers and frequently discussed
among them, that none of the ocean
passenger steamers plying between this
country and Europe carry sufficient
number Of boats for the accommoda.
tion of their living frclgh, in case of
disaster
1t will he remembered that on occa.
sion of the burning or the City of Mon.
treal, no, long ago, all the passengers
were saved, which was considered
great piece Of good fortune and set
down to the credit Of the line, but II
was not stated at the time that the
rescue was due 10 the small number of
people aboard rather than TO the fore.
thought of the company Had the
Montreal carried her full complement
OF passengers. between two and three
hundred of them would have been lost
for lack of boats to float them away
from the burning wreck.
The special, in further illustration OF
It's point, refers also to the last west.
ward trip of the Umbria, and says that
had the steamer gone down in storm
or been destroyed by fire, or on account
OF lie, kIge been abandoned, and all her
boats had been successfully launched,
there would not have been room, enough
in them to accommodate more than the
women and children and the seamen
necessary to man the boats. Fully
three.fourths Of the male passengers
would have been left to perish.
So forcibly did this startling revela.
tion impress the passengers that they
united in request to Mr.. Il. A. Rich
ardson, the Baltimore Suns Washing.
ton correspondent, who was on board,
to consult Inspector General Dumont
and secure official substan,iation of an
unpleasant fact.
He did so, and General Dumont has
ascertained that the limit of the aggre.
gate capacity OF the Umbria's boats
was four hundred less than the number
OF persons on the steamer, the rules of
the British Board Of Trade not requir.
Ing a vessel Of 1000 or 5000 tons to
carry any more boats than one of 900
tons register, while under the regula.
tions prescribed by General Dumont
all steamers over 1900 tons have to be
furnished with an additional boat Of
495 cubic feet capacity for each add.
tional 500 tons or fraction thereof.
But this Government has no control
over ocean steamers under a foreign
flag, except when sailing from our
ports, consequently the one hundred
thousand passengers who annually
make the European trip must continue
70 take their chances until the British
owners are compelled 10 provide ac.
commodatlons more nearly In accord.
ance with the rules inforced upon
American steamers. There was not
life lost last summer OF all this great
throng, but there's no telling when
some contingency may occur to demon.
strate by some startling catastrophe the
fatal short slghtedness of the present
policy.
HERE'S our hand, Mr.. Burdette.
Your remarks before the Baptist Con-
gress at indianapolis, In behalf of the
secular press, as being better on an
average than ever before, were timely
and just. There Is considerable sig.
niflcanee also In the suggestion of Rev.
DIR. Tasker, that the newspapers were
as good educators of the people as their
readers would permit them to be. Not
that the press Is, or should be, servlle
follower Of public sentiment. On the
contrary, Its peculiar province is to
lead, but 1t gains nothing In influence,
and loses good deal In circulation, by
becoming too didactic. Its proper place
is on the high level, between the
demagogue and the pedagogue.
IT was small piece of business on
the part of the State Civil Service Com.
mission of New York to dispense with
the services Of Mr.. Hooper merely be.
cause he came on to Washington to
collect funds for the Democratic cam.
paign, but we are not very much sur.
prised at It, The sacrifice was doubt.
less deemed necessary to appease the
ruffled waters or reform. Mr.. Hooper
is to be congratulated upon his good
fortune In being dismissed. So far as
we are advised, he did make some col.
leclions In this city, and the money was
doubtless put where 1t would do the
most good. The triumphant Democ.
racy" of New York should sec TO It
that he is provided for.
WILL the appointment of Mr. Dick.
inson to the Cabinet, as successor to Mr..
Villas, assuming that 1t be made, result
in swinging the State of Michigan over
10 the Democracy? A Detroit special
to the Cincinnati Enquirer, says that
the appointment will strengthen the
Democratic party there, and rattle
the Republicans a good deal, but hardly
avail 10 work political revolution
In the State. There Is no particular
reason why 1t should. Did Mr.. Villas
to the Cabinet rescue Wis.
consin from Republican control? Has
Mr.. Endicott carried Massachusetts?
THE prohibition vote in Massachu-
setts at the late election shows but a
slight gain over the st. John vote of
1884, which furnishes the Boston Irdc-
Tier with the text for homily to the
emperance people Of the old Bay State
lpon the folly of their third party tao.
les. But the temperance people can
lever be convinced that It's folly to be